All of us go through difficult times in one way or another. During such times, we want to have solutions, and we want them immediately. So we pray to God, believing that he answers prayers. If our prayers aren’t answered, we question the sufficiency of our faith. If you follow the prosperity gospel (health and wealth gospel) preachers, you feel guilty for not having enough faith, and you keep asking for more faith as if your faith is chiefly a means to an end.
In Matthew 15:21-28, we read about the faith of a Canaanite woman. She strikingly illustrates three characteristics of biblical faith through her three remarkable statements. Here are those three characteristics to remember when you are going through difficult times.
1. Biblical Faith is Undemanding.
“Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David” (v. 22)
A Canaanite woman cries to the Lord for mercy on behalf of her daughter, who is severely oppressed by demon. Such a prayer would have proved great faith had she lived in Jerusalem. But she is from two non-Jewish cities, namely, Tyre and Sidon. In Matthew 20, we read about two blind men. Like the Canaanite woman, they cried out, “Lord, mercy on us, Son of David.” This isn’t a big surprise because they are from the Jewish territory. The fact that this Canaanite woman calls Jesus as “Lord” and “Son of David” is a big surprise. She is a stranger and a surprise to Jesus’ Jewish disciples but definitely not to God.
She acknowledges Jesus as the Son of David. “Son of David” is a distinctively Jewish designation for the Messiah. She does not consider Jesus as one of the exorcists to whom Gentiles went to receive deliverance. She comes to Jesus, acknowledging him as the Son of David. How did she know this?
Biblical faith is demonstrated by trust in the person of Jesus Christ. And even that faith is presented as a gift from God in Ephesians 2:8. It cannot be earned. Notice here that the Canaanite woman does not come to Jesus based on her merits. Her ethnic background and gender make her an unlikely candidate for help. She comes to Jesus as one who pleads for mercy. Had she pleaded deliverance based on her own merits, we can conclude that biblical faith is demanding. Since she pleaded for mercy, we understand that biblical faith is undemanding. Remember this whenever you bring your requests to God in faith. You cannot demand. You can just plead for mercy.
2. Biblical Faith is Unwavering
“Lord, help me.” (v. 25)
The Canaanite woman faces three hurdles after she pleads for mercy: two from Jesus and one from Jesus’ disciples. First, Jesus did not answer her a word. To the two blind men in Matthew 20, when they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David,” Jesus called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus responded immediately. Whereas here, the Canaanite woman cries out, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David,” Jesus does not answer a word. Second, Jesus’ disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away.” They did not want this woman to bug them. Third, instead of sending her away as his disciples requested, Jesus answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” On the surface, it seems as if Jesus is rejecting her request, but if you look deeper, it seems Jesus is deliberately waiting for a further response from her.
She faces three discouraging hurdles for her faith in Jesus. If I was in her position, I would have given up. But the Canaanite woman does not give up. Instead, she does something spectacular. She comes and kneels before Jesus and says, “Lord, help me.” She is persistent. She does not waver in her faith in Jesus. This is biblical faith. Biblical faith is unwavering.
Perhaps you are experiencing the same silence from Jesus right now. Or maybe you are offended by people who absolutely show no interest in your situation. Or perhaps you feel like God says no to your prayer. For the Canaanite woman, Jesus continues to be her Lord. Whether God is silent or whether he answers prayers or he does not, he is still our Lord. Let us not be like the one who wavers like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
3. Biblical Faith is Unashamed
“Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs
that fall from their masters’ table.” (v. 27)
The first saying of Jesus to the Canaanite woman, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” is not encouraging. Yet she prayed, “Lord, help me.” The second saying of our Lord, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs,” is even less encouraging than the first. This could have cut her off from all hope if she had not had faith in Jesus. For modern-day readers, this might seem rude and insulting. But this wasn’t the case for the Canaanite woman. Even what seemed rude and insulting did not silence her.
First, she is not ashamed of her situation. She willingly accepts: “Yes, Lord.” She does not disagree. She doesn’t care whether she is a gentile, or, in common Jewish thought of the day, a “dog.” For her, Jesus is Lord regardless of her situation. She willingly accepts that she has no right to receive anything from Jesus. Second, she pleads for some crumbs of mercy to be granted to her. She is willing to receive even the crumbs from the Lord. Biblical faith is unashamed. Biblical faith expresses one’s situation or acts openly and without guilt or embarrassment. Whenever you are asking for any crumbs of mercy from the Lord, remember this Canaanite woman.
Jesus responds to such striking faith – undemanding, unwavering, and unashamed faith with a striking statement: “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” The Canaanite woman not only receives a good standing, but her daughter also receives instant healing. While the healing was instant, the path to healing was eventful.
This story ends with a happy ending. The intention of writing this article is not to promise you that every prayer of yours will be answered. The intention is to help readers understand what biblical faith is. We may not always expect the same happy ending on this side of eternity. But we can certainly expect better ending on the other side of eternity where there is no mourning or crying or pain.
